Ice bucket lining



oct. 3, 1950 A, A, Tozzl 2,524,497

ICE BUCKET LINING Filed sept. 1s. 1949 IN V EN TOR.

flrmand .fL Tozzi Patented Oct. 3, 1950 UNITED STATES ATENT OFFICE IcE BUCKET LINING Armand A. Tozzi, Bronx, N. Y. Application september 13, 1949, serial No. 115,329

2 Claims. 'i

The present invention relates to improvements in buckets and other containers for ice or other frozen material, and it relates, more speccally, to a new and improved removable protective lining for the interior of receptacles or buckets or the like which are used for carrying or storing ice, although they may be used also for other purposes.

It is well known that the bottom and the inner side of the walls of an ice bucket or the like frequently are damaged by accidentally dropping thereinto ice cubes or tools for handling the ice, such as ice prongs, or by manipulating the contents of such buckets by means of ice prongs or similar tools.

Therefore, one object of the present invention is the provision of a device of the character described which constitutes a removable protective lining that can be inserted easily and quickly into any Ibucket or the like without the use of any tools and without the application of any considerable amount of skill, and which covers the inner sides of the walls and the base or bottom of the bucket or the like.

Another object of the present invention is the provision of a device of the character described which will adhere firmly to the interior of the bucket or the like, after it has been inserted thereinto, so that it will not fall out of the bucket or the like when the same is being emptied, but

which can be removed easily if necessarily, by pulling on a handle provided on the device.

Still another object of the present invention is the provision of a device of the character described which I prefer to call a iin-o-gard ice bucket lining protector, and which is collapsible, so that it requires a minimum of shipping and storage space, thus reducing considerably the cost and space requirements for wholesalers, retailers, and the like who are handling this item,

Yet a further object of the present invention is the provision of a device of the character described which is light in weight and simple in construction, so that it can be manufactured and sold at a very reasonable price, but which is also sturdy, durable, and well adapted to withstand the rough usage to which devices of this type ordinarily are subjected.

With the foregoing and other objects in view Iwhich will appear as the description proceeds, the invention consists oi certain novel details of construction and combinations of parts hereinafter more fully described and pointed out in the claims, it being understood that changes may be made in the construction and arrangement of (Cl. 22o- 63) 2 parts without departing from the spirit of the invention as claimed.

In the accompanying drawing a preferred form of the invention has been shown.

In said drawing:`

Figure 1 is a top plan view of a preferred embodiment of my invention as it appears when it is unfolded and ready for being inserted into an ice bucket or the like;

Figure 2 is a side elevation of the same; and

Figure 3 is a side View of the device as it appears aiter it has been inserted into a bucket or the like.

Similar reference characters refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

In the drawing the numeral 2 denotes exible elongated blades of comparatively thin plastic material, such as twenty-five gauge Iblades of an acetate composition. In the drawing there are shown four blades 2, but more or fewer blades 2 may be used for each device. Each blade 2 has an aperture 4 in its center portion, and all the blades 2 preferably are of substantially the same dimensions. The blades 2 are pivotally secured to each other, one above the other, by means of a threaded bolt which extends through the aperture 4. The lower portion of the bolt 6 extends through a suction cup 8, which encompasses the head of the bolt B. A disk lil, which may have a circular, or a polygonal or an otherwise shaped outer periphery, is placed upon the upper blade 2, and the upper portion of the bolt 5 is extended through the center of the disk i0. The latter may be made of any suitable material, preferably of twenty-five gauge plastic acetate material or the like. A handle I2, which is provided -with an internal thread, is screwed upon the upper portion of the bolt 5. The blades 2 can be moved on the bolt 6 to such a position that they register with one another, so that the space required for shipping and storing the device will be reduced to a minimum. Before using the device, the blades 2 are unfolded like the blades of a fan by turning them around the bolt 6, so that they will assume the position shown in Figure I. Then the handle knob i2 is screwed tightly upon the bolt 6, and the device is held directly over the opening rim of an ice bucket I4 or the like; then, while holding the device by the handle i2, it is gently pressed downward until the suction cup 8 adhers rmly to the inside base of the ice bucket i4. Thereby the device assumes a shape similar to an inverted umbrella as shown in Figure 3, and forms a protective guard for the base and inside walls of the bucket I4. The suction cup 8 will prevent the device from accidentally sliding out of the bucket I4, but it can be removed therefrom at will by pulling the handle I2.

Since certain changes may be made in the above article and diierent embodiments of the invention could be made without departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawing shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

It is also to be understood that the following claims are intended to cover all of the generic and specific features of the invention herein described, and all statements of the scope of the invention which as a matter of language might be said to fall therebetween.

Having thus fully described my said invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent in the United States is:

l. An ice bucket lining protector comprising a plurality of exible blades each of which has an aperture in its center, a bolt being extended through the central apertures of said blades pivotally attaching said blades to each other one 4 above the other, a suction cup being secured to the lower side of the lowest blade by means of said bolt, a handle being secured to that portion of said bolt which protrudes beyond the upper blade, and a disk being interposed between said upper blade and said handle.

2. A device of the character described comprising a plurality of elongated rbendable blades of substantially the same dimensions each of which has an aperture in its center, a bolt being extended through the central apertures of said blades for pivotally attaching said blades to each other and having a head at its lower end and an external thread at its upper portion, a suction cup encompassing the head of said bolt having an aperture through which extends the lower portion of said bolt, a handle being Screwed upon the upper threaded portion of said bolt, and a resilient disk through which extends the upper portion of said bolt being provided beneath said handle.

ARMAND A. TOZZI.

No references cited. 

